Yugidoka: The Beautiful Anarchy
by The 17th Chimera
Summary: And then there were contracts.  2
1. Chapter 1

Kaito looked down. The ground suddenly seemed a lot further down that it had from the landing, and he shut his eyes.

'This will probably hurt,' he whispered, feeling the air rushing beside his ears.

* * *

><p>The next thing Kaito knew, he was lying in a bed in an unknown room, listening to a strange whispering noise.<p>

He opened his eyes and immediately regretted it. The light was blinding and painful.

'Where the hell am I?' he muttered, voice harsh.

'You're in a hospital, you idiot,' replied a familiar voice, and he turned to see a blurry blue figure. 'Where else does one go when one jumps out of a fourth-storey window?'

'I-' started Kaito, as his vision began to clear. 'I jumped out a third storey window?'

'Very dramatically, too,' replied Ryoga. 'Though, I will compliment you on the fact that you didn't scream.'

Kaito frowned at him. 'So, how come I'm not dead if I fell out of a fourth-storey window?'

'Jumped out,' corrected Ryoga. 'But to answer your question, you're not dead because Homura and I arrived in time to soften your fall.'

'You're with that girl?' asked Kaito.

'I'd prefer not to be called "that girl",' said Homura, walking in from outside of Kaito's vision, before turning to Ryoga. 'Your friend is fine,' she continued. 'Just a bit shaken by the fact that he may have just killed a man.'

'What?!' yelled Ryoga, running out. Kaito turned painfully to Homura.

'You know,' remarked Homura, 'you and him would make very good partners.'

'I doubt that,' replied Kaito. 'The burden I have taken is one that I will have anyone else share.'

'That's a stupid answer,' said Homura. 'There is no burden that is too small to be shared. I, more than anyone, know that.'

'You think you've had to see what I've seen?' croaked Kaito. 'Can you even imagine the misery I have endured?'

'I had to kill my best friend once,' interrupted Homura. 'I have seen her die so many times. I've seen her transform into an abomination beyond human comprehension. I've seen her destroy the entire world, whilst I was helpless and could only look upon. _I have endured agony beyond the minds of most humans._ Don't come to me and say that you've had it bad.'

'Who are you?' asked Kaito.

'I am Madoka's guardian,' replied Homura bluntly. 'I swore to protect her, and until the end I have and will. So tell me, Kaito, what have you endured to make _you_ like this?'

'My brother…' whispered Kaito, before collapsing again.

Homura frowned at his body, then sighed.

'So it's not over yet,' she muttered.

* * *

><p>IV awoke.<p>

'III!' he yelled instantly, wincing. 'Where are you?'

He looked around at the wrecked building. There was nothing else moving.

'III?' he whispered. 'III?! Where are you, III?!'

He slowly tried to stand, only to find that his right leg had been broken by the fall, the bone actually split and piercing through the skin.

'III?' he whispered, collapsing weakly backwards onto the ground and beginning to cry.

* * *

><p>'I killed him,' mumbled Yuma, lying in bed. 'I killed him.'<p>

'Yuma-' started Astral.

'No, you shut up, Astral!' yelled Yuma, turning angrily to face the spirit. 'This is all your fault!'

'Yuma-' repeated Astral.

'If it weren't for your memories, none of this would have happened!' cried Yuma. 'And why? Why do your memories make people like this? What _are_ you?'

Astral stared silently back, before answering, 'I ask myself that all the time. I do not know why I was sent to this world, but I believe that I may not have been sent with the best intentions.'

Yuma paused, and was about to say something, when he was interrupted by Ryoga running in.

'Yuma-' started Ryoga.

'You must be so happy,' muttered Yuma. 'After all, you wanted to kill him, didn't you?'

'I didn't want you to be involved in this!' roared Ryoga, and Yuma looked back at him, startled. 'I knew something bad would happen, and it did!' Ryoga slumped to the ground, and laughed weakly. 'Well, look at that,' he murmured. 'Even in death, that bastard's still torturing people.'

'Ryoga-' started Yuma, but now it was Ryoga's turn to interrupt Yuma.

'Don't let it affect you, Yuma,' he replied. 'What IV did was unforgivable, but what you did was unavoidable.'

'But I-'

'That idiot put himself in that position. Had you not defeated him, then he would have taken your soul and your Numbers.'

'And Astral would have-'

'Yes, Yuma. Your magic duelling spirit would have died.'

'Hey!' cried Yuma, upset. 'He's real, he's real! He's right here!'

'That sounds better,' laughed Ryoga. 'Come on, get up. Your friends should be here in a few minutes, I called your girlfriend and told her you were in hospital.'

'Kotori?' Yuma blushed. 'She's not my- I mean-'

'Whatever you say, Yuma,' replied Ryoga, continuing to smile.

'She's not, she's not, she's not!' yelled Yuma insistently.

Astral sighed. 'You're such an idiot, Tonma,' he said.

'I am not a chowder-head!' shouted Yuma, and Ryoga laughed.

* * *

><p>IV took a crimson D-Gazer from his pocket, and tapped it. There was a slight pause, and III's face appeared on the screen.<p>

'IV-sama!' he yelled happily. 'You're alive, you're okay! We couldn't find your body, so I thought you might be alright, but the building looked ready to collapse, so V told me to leave.'

'Never mind that,' muttered IV. 'I need assistance. And also, I need to know what you found out about that girl.'

III deflated. 'You're still on about that?' he sighed.

'Damn straight I am!' yelled IV angrily. 'It was her and her friend that brought those fools here and tore our building apart! Like hell I'm going to just let them go!'

'Well… uh…' stuttered III. 'All I know about her really is that she dangerous, and can control time. Also, she's got something to do with Kyubey, but I don't know what.'

IV paused at the unfamiliar name. 'Kyubey?' he asked.

'Oh, it's this little animal thing that turned up yesterday. It can talk, and knew about Homura, but because it was invisible V couldn't find out anything about it.'

IV stared at III blankly. 'Okay, back up a bit,' he said. 'This "Kyubey" is a magic talking animal that's got something to do with Homura?'

'Uh…' stammered III.

'This just got a _lot_ more interesting,' continued IV, sneering. 'III, I want you to find that Kyubey creature and bring it to me, immediately. And from there, the game truly begins.'

IV laughed, an insane laugh that echoed around the building.

III sighed. 'Whatever you say, nii-sama,' he replied unenthusiastically, vanishing from the screen.

* * *

><p>In the centre of Heartland, Gauche returned.<p>

'How was your… expedition?' asked Mr Heartland smoothly.

Gauche glared at him. 'Eventful,' he replied. 'Not to mention, disappointing.'

Heartland laughed. 'It takes a lot to disappoint you, Gauche,' he stated.

'Why do you have Kaito hunting the Numbers?' replied Gauche. 'If he finds out about his brother–'

'Kaito will remain under my control for as long as I see fit,' declared Heartland. 'If you have a problem with Kaito, perhaps you should take it up with Kaito himself?'

Gauche's lip tightened, and Heartland laughed. 'I see,' he mused. 'You already have.'

'He has some new power,' said Gauche. 'That creature he summoned… it looked… Varian.'

'That is troubling,' replied Heartland. 'But again, until he has collected all the Numbers, Kaito is going to remain under our control. There is simply no alternative for him.' Heartland patted Gauche on the shoulder. 'How about you resume your duelling in the Carnival?' he asked. 'After all, you only have three Heart Pieces, and there are only a few hours left.'

Gauche nodded, and turned to walk out, before pausing. 'By the way,' he asked, 'have you ever heard of someone called "Tron"?'

'Tron…' mused Heartland, clearly disturbed. 'Tron…? That name is… not familiar to me. But…' He shook his head. 'Gauche, you are dismissed.'

Gauche left, wondering what in the world Tron could be, that Heartland had had that reaction.


	2. Chapter 2

For the second time in three days, III was stalking a girl through the streets of Heartland.

'I need to stop this before it becomes a habit,' he muttered, and laughed softly at his own joke.

Further up the street, Anna was pushing through the crowd of people, heading towards one of the several entrances to Heartland's central area, the massive carnival at its core. Behind her, Kyubey was crawling through the crowd, staying out of her sight, but close enough that he could easily engage her once more.

'Okay,' whispered III, 'here goes nothing.'

There was a flash of light from his seal, and time froze around him. He leapt around the still people and ran over to Kyubey, grabbing it and vanishing back into the crowd.

As time resumed, Anna was happy to notice that the constant whispering of that cat-creature had stopped. With any luck, she thought, it would go bother someone else now.

* * *

><p>'Kaito-sama!' yelled Orbital, wheeling into Kaito's hospital room at high speed. 'Oh, Kaito-sama, are you alright?'<p>

'Do I _look_ alright, Orbital?!' yelled Kaito in response. 'Where were you?'

'I was checking up on Haruto, as you requested,' said Orbital. Kaito relaxed.

'How is he?' he murmured.

'He's still in a critical condition,' moaned Orbital. 'He was badly hurt by whatever those bastards did to him, despite your victory.'

Kaito frowned. 'Maybe they aren't all that bad,' he whispered, remembering III protecting his brother and his monsters over himself.

'What?' cried Orbital, spinning backwards in surprise and colliding with Homura, who was walking in.

Homura looked down at the robot with distaste. 'You're a very clumsy thing,' she stated.

'Hey, watch your mouth!' protested Orbital.

'She's not wrong, though,' remarked Kaito.

'As you say, Kaito-sama,' said Orbital, chastened.

'Maybe you should go get your boss something to eat?' suggested Homura. Orbital looked at Kaito, who nodded back, and Orbital rolled out of the room, head bowed.

'I'm sorry about him,' said Kaito to Homura. 'He's been in the family for years, he's all I really have left of my parents.'

'Your parents are dead?' murmured Homura. Kaito laughed.

'Well, you could say that,' he replied. 'To be honest, the few memories I really have of my parents aren't that welcome any more. And even when Haruto was born, it was more like one day he wasn't there, the next day he was.' He frowned slightly. 'Heartland knows my parents, though,' he muttered. 'Or at least one of them.'

Homura raised an eyebrow. 'And what about those number guys?' she asked. 'Do you know anything about their parents?'

'You mean, III and IV and V?' replied Kaito. 'Yeah. Their dad used to work with mine, but I think he's dead now. I don't know too much about it.' He shook his head. 'Not sure I want to, with the way that they're acting now.'

* * *

><p>There was a clicking sound, and Heartland's chamber went dim.<p>

A huge sphere appeared in the centre of the room, and the aged face of Dr. Faker, Heartland's sole superior, appeared upon the screen.

'Heartland!' said Faker, and Heartland bowed. 'How goes the Carnival?'

'Everything is in place for the finals,' replied Heartland. 'And from what I am told, the hunting is going brilliantly for Kaito.'

'That's excellent,' declared Faker, before noticing the worried tone in Heartland's voice. 'Is something troubling you, Heartland?' he asked.

'I heard a name today,' replied Heartland. 'One that I have not heard in a while. "Tron".'

'Tron?!' repeated Faker. 'Tron? That was… that was the name of the project that I was leading to open the gateway to the Varian World… with Byron and Kazuma…' The blood rushed out of Faker's face. 'Impossible…' he whispered. 'That one of them could be alive… Why did you hear this name?!'

'Gauche asked me if I knew it,' replied Heartland. 'I felt that I would not be able to get any further information from him, so I dismissed the question.'

'Well, find out how he knew it!' commanded Faker. 'I do not want anything interfering in the collection of the Numbers! And if either of them… Byron… Kazuma… are alive, then disposing of them must be our top priority!'

Heartland bowed, then added, 'And if one of them is indeed alive, then would you say that they may be behind the attack of Haruto's life?'

'It is a possibility we cannot dismiss!' replied Faker. 'I want your best people on this – no.' His eyes glinted. 'I want _you_ on this, Heartland. I do not want you to rest until you have found this… _Tron_… and destroyed him!'

Heartland bowed again. 'As you wish, Dr. Faker,' he said, and the sphere vanished and the room went dark.

* * *

><p>III returned to the Tron family's second building, a small abandoned art gallery on Heartland's outskirts, Kyubey in tow.<p>

'Why are you taking me?' protested Kyubey, agitated, but III ignored the creature as he walked into the building's central hall.

'III!' came a laugh from nearby, but the voice was cold and twisted. III turned slowly to see IV limping towards him, leg somehow healed and eyes glowing with a strange red light.

'Nii-sama?' replied III, startled.

'You look worried, III,' said IV contemptuously. 'There's nothing wrong, I just got Tron to give me a bit more power so that I'd be able to interact with this creature of yours.'

IV leant down so that he was at eye level with Kyubey, and Kyubey stared back into his cold, glittering eyes. 'What are you?' whispered Kyubey, and IV laughed insanely, a violent, piercing laugh.

'I,' declared IV, grabbing Kyubey and holding him by his tail, 'am your new master, _Kyubey_. And you're going to tell me all about these contracts of yours.'

'Why do you want to know about the contracts?' asked Kyubey.

'You said you'd turn III into a Puella Magi,' replied IV. 'And why would you want to do that?'

Kyubey blinked. 'I turn people into Puella Magi so that they can fight witches,' it replied.

'"Witches"?' repeated IV. 'Do elaborate.'

'They are creatures of pure chaos and destruction,' replied Kyubey. 'They live to inspire fear and hate in other, and feed off of their misery.'

IV smirked. 'And would it be possible to _capture_ one of these witches?' he asked. Kyubey blinked again, startled.

'Why would you want to capture a witch?' replied Kyubey. 'Well, I suppose it could be possible, but only a Puella Magi has the ability to defeat a witch, and most of them would rather kill the witches than attempt to capture them.'

'Oh, I think I know someone who could help with that,' stated IV dismissively, before turning to III and smiling again, a cold, vicious smile.

III looked back at him with wide eyes. 'Nii-sama?' he whispered.

'How'd you like to make a wish for me, III?' replied IV, and his eyes flared red.


	3. Chapter 3

'There's a new Puella Magi,' said Madoka.

Homura turned to look at her friend, startled. Madoka had been silent for an hour now, simply sitting on the end of Kaito's bed with a dreamy expression on her face. Now, her eyes were focused and alert.

'Have I missed something?' muttered Kaito, looking up from the magazine he had acquired on his bedside table. 'What the hell is a Puella Magi?'

'It's…' Homura paused for a moment. 'It's like in anime, with magical girls? It's something like that?'

'I don't watch anime,' replied Kaito.

'Neither do I,' admitted Homura. 'But it's the comparison I use most of the time because it's reasonably good at describing the situation, even if it's not amazingly accurate.'

'Understandable.' Kaito glanced over to Madoka. 'So how come she can sense another "Puella Magi" and you can't?'

Homura paused for a moment, seemingly gathering her thoughts, before replying. 'Madoka senses emotions,' replied Homura. 'She can sense a "Puella Magi" because their mind – and thus their emotions – are more tightly contained, and so they stand out to her.'

'A castle,' whispered Madoka, and Homura turned to face her friend.

'Madoka?' started Homura, but she was interrupted.

'I think… I think they're fighting a witch…' murmured Madoka. 'They went out and fought a witch almost immediately… or they were waiting for it to arrive? I can't tell…' Madoka's brow furrowed.

'Where?' asked Homura.

'I can't tell…' replied Madoka. 'They're in the witch's realm. My vision of them is blurry, I can see flashes, but most it's blocked by this sort of mist… But there's a castle. And there are these flashes of light all around the castle… and there's an explosion… and… and…'

'And?' insisted Homura.

'There's a man…' gasped Madoka. 'He's… his scar… he's…' before falling backwards onto the bed, drained.

Homura paused, then thought of something. 'Hey Madoka,' she mused, and her friend blearily looked up at her, 'you said she was fighting a witch, right?'

'The Puella Magi fought a witch, yeah,' responded Madoka. 'However, this dimension never had witches in it to begin with. A small portion of one of your Universes, Homura, might have fragmented into this Universe, which could explain why it was missed.'

Homura scowled. 'So there are Puella Magi, and there are witches,' she muttered. Madoka nodded.

'I won't be able to do anything about the witches until we leave,' replied Madoka. 'And I think that before we do, we should attempt to find out what we're up against. If there's another Puella Magi…'

Homura nodded. Kaito, on the other hand, frowned. 'We were doing a good job of taking care of ourselves before you turned up,' he declared.

'Well, now things are getting serious,' replied Homura, 'so maybe you might want the help of someone who knows what you're up against.'

'I know exactly what I'm up against,' rebutted Kaito. 'I'm up against people continually trying to tell me what to do, and I don't need you to join that group.'

'You're a very selfish person,' said Homura.

'I've had to be,' answered Kaito. 'I chose to lose my humanity to protect my brother.'

Homura smirked. 'How noble of you,' she remarked.

'Don't dismiss me!' yelled Kaito. 'You say you know what I've been through but you don't! You don't know! So don't you dare mock me!'

Homura blinked. 'I'm sorry,' she conceded. 'It's just that I was in the same situation as you, and I don't want others to have to endure what I did.'

'It's my choice,' stated Kaito. 'And there's nothing you can say to change it.'

Homura nodded, then turned to Madoka. 'Do you have any idea where she is?' she asked.

Madoka shut her eyes, concentrating, before sighing. 'There's a bridge now,' she stated. 'It's got rows of lights of all different colours all along it. They… they're talking to someone. Someone tall. Blue hair.'

'Long hair?' interjected Kaito. 'Like, long and wavy?'

'Yeah…' murmured Madoka, brow furrowed in concentration.

'V,' muttered Kaito. 'That bastard.'

'He's giving them something,' continued Madoka. 'I can't tell what it is, it's too small. It's black. And… there's a flash… the tall one's gone.'

'Gone?' asked Kaito, but Homura motioned for him to be silent.

Madoka's eyes opened, and they were glowing red. 'He wants revenge,' she gasped, before falling onto her back, unconscious.

'What?' replied Homura, startled. 'Who wants revenge?'

'If they're associated with V,' mused Kaito, 'then they probably want revenge against one of us.'

'So we should be ready,' answered Homura, turning and walking out. 'I assume you can take care of yourself?' she continued from the corridor, and Kaito's mouth tightened.

'Of course I can!' he yelled, before the door to his room sealed shut and there was silence.

* * *

><p>III looked down at the building he was floating above.<p>

'Yuma Tsukumo,' he muttered, voice almost inaudible over the noise of the wind around him. 'I'll make you pay for what you did to my brother.'

His feet hit the top of the building lightly, and suddenly Homura was standing in front of him, holding a vicious looking pistol.

'And what are you doing here?' she muttered, glancing at his new magenta clothes for a split second, before turning back to look at his face.

'I'm here to talk to Yuma Tsukumo,' replied III, voice much harder than it had been the last time they met. 'And since he's none of your concern, could you move, please?'

'I've made him my concern,' replied Homura. 'So leave, or else you'll have to face the consequences.'

III threw his hand out, throwing a wave of green towards Homura. She leapt to one side, before firing three shots towards III. The first two disappeared in a blast of green, but the third stabbed into the back of his left hand. There was a curious cracking sound, and the seal on his hand vanished.

If III had felt that impact, he made no sign of it; instead, he immediately conjured a thin gold-hilted sword in his unwounded hand, causing Homura to blink in alarm.

'That's new,' she remarked, before attempting to stop time before the blade hit – and failing. 'Wha–' she whispered, before the blade slammed into her buckler and threw her backwards.

'Nii-sama figured out your weapon,' declared III, before taking a small black device from his pocket. 'This is a Reti field,' he continued. 'Nii-sama calls it a Reti-9, it'll stop you from freezing time around me.'

'I thought it took a bit more effect than usual before,' muttered Homura, before grabbing another pistol from her buckler and firing three shots from each pistol at III.

III took a card from his pocket and held it in front of him. There was a flash, and suddenly a massive tablet was floating in front of him. Homura's four bullets hit it and bounced off harmlessly.

'What the hell is that?!' yelled Homura, before taking a small orb from her buckler and throwing it at the tablet.

III held out another card, which flashed. In front of the tablet appeared a glowing pot, into which Homura's bomb was sucked. Homura blinked, startled.

'My cards are the only things I have left!' yelled III. 'Of course, they're going to protect me!'

Homura took a step back, and felt a slight vibration in her buckler stop. _So that's the limit of the Reti field,_ she mused silently. 'That's an interesting power you've got there,' she remarked. 'Where'd you get it?'

'I sold my soul for my brother's sake,' replied III. 'These powers are going to bring back my family!'

'And if they can't?' asked Homura. 'I've met your family, or at least as much of it as I want to. Your brother who you so willingly sold your soul for is a heartless monster. I wouldn't be surprised if he didn't care about you at all.'

'I don't care if he doesn't care about me! I care about him!'

Homura was taken aback. 'You know?'

'Of course I do!' cried III. 'He's my brother, and he doesn't even care about me anymore. He's been consumed by revenge.'

'Then why do you willingly put yourself in the same position?'

'I bear the burden of my brothers in order to save them from it,' answered III. 'Which is why _you need to get out of my way._'

'I'm not going to let you get past, no matter what,' replied Homura.

III bowed his head. 'I'm sorry, then,' he muttered, before taking a third card from his pocket, a black one this time, and throwing it out in front of him. It shone with a penetrating white light, and behind III the massive form of a great floating city appeared behind him.

'Machu Mach!' he yelled. 'Destroy her! _Fire of Vris!_'

There was a blast of light from the topmost pillar of the castle, and a massive golden blast slammed towards Homura.

'I'm sorry,' whispered III, as Homura was consumed in the light, and the ground exploded around her, and she disappeared into a cloud of dust. III took a step forwards – then stopped.

Then cloud around Homura vanished, and she disappeared, glowing softly pink.

'…what?' gasped III. 'What?'

Homura held her right hand out, and a glowing purple sword appeared in her hand. 'That was a good attempt,' she replied. 'But I'm afraid it's not going to work.'

'I-' started III, before Homura leapt at III, swinging her sword and slicing through his Sol Monolith. With a flash, it and Machu Mach vanished in a cloud of dust, and he was flung back.

Homura pointed her sword at III. 'Leave,' she ordered. 'Now.'

III paused for a moment, then smiled softly. 'You duel, Homura,' he stated. 'And since I'm not willing to leave here until I've paid Yuma Tsukumo back for what he did for my brother, how about we duel to decide it?'

'And if I refuse?' replied Homura. 'Duelling you gives me no advantage.'

III took a card from his pocket and threw it out in front of him. Behind him, a massive shadowy form began to solidify. Homura saw a single blazing red eye staring down at her, and she involuntarily gasped.

'Those are my terms,' declared III. 'You can duel me, or the two of will be stuck in a fight neither of us can win easily.'

Homura cursed. 'Fine,' she muttered, and the buckler on her hand unfolded into a thin blade-like Duel Disk. 'Let's duel, III.'


	4. Chapter 4

IV looked through the glass at the massive empty room in front of him.

'You're not deceiving me, are you?' he asked Kyubey, who was sealed in a glass sphere on his desk.

'What reason would I have to lie?' replied Kyubey, weakly.

'I don't know, revenge?' muttered IV. 'After all, I did stick you in a hamster ball.'

'Emotion is just a mental disorder,' stated Kyubey. 'I feel no need to elicit revenge.'

IV clicked his tongue. 'A pity,' he said. 'I feel that the fear and hatred really add to the experience. Ah well.' IV took four small black spheres from his coat, and laughed, before placing them in a small slot on the ground.

The four objects fell through the slot into the huge empty room, as behind them the slot folded shut.

'Now then,' crowed IV, hands hovering over a series of dials, smirking, 'let's see what I can get my new friends to do.'

* * *

><p>'I'll lead!' yelled Homura, drawing her sixth card from her Deck. 'Draw! I Summon the Puella Magi, Sayaka the Sword!'<p>

**ATK: 1900, LV: 4**

'Puella Magi?!' replied III, startled, as beside Homura a blue-clothed girl appeared, wielding a cutlass.

'Yes, Puella Magi,' answered Homura. 'My monsters are my past, and each of them is another Puella Magi, another warrior I have fought with in my past. With them, I will protect _your_ future.'

'_My_ future?' responded III.

'Yes, your future,' said Homura. 'The one that your idiot brother made such an effort to screw up.'

_Made…_ thought III, and he mentally smirked. _They think IV's dead._

'I'm going to continue my turn now, if you don't mind?' stated Homura, taking another card from her hand and throwing it onto her disk. 'Because I control a Puella Magi, I can Special Summon Madoka the Follower in Defence Position!'

**DEF: 0, LV: 1**

'That's… that's the girl that was with you…' stuttered III, as Madoka appeared beside Homura, dressed in a simple pink dress.

Homura smiled, and her eyes softened. 'Madoka is a very brave girl,' she said. 'She follows her friends into the depths of despair, and beyond, and she never loses her hope. And she will always, no matter what, protect her friends from harm.' Her eyes went hard once more, and she placed another card into her disk. 'I'll set a card to end.'

'Then it's my turn!' declared III, drawing his card. 'I draw, and Summon the OOPArts monster, Mud Golem Shakouki! Then, I'll attack Madoka with Shakouki! If your past is your past, then with my friends I will transcend it! Go, Shakouki! Quipus Laser!'

**ATK: 1700, LV: 4**

'I activate the trap, Hope Wave!' countered Homura. 'When you attack a monster with no attack power, I can negate that attack and end the Battle Phase!' Shakouki's sword vanished into gold dust, and Homura smirked. 'Then,' she continued, 'you take 300 damage for each card in my hand!'

**III: 4000→3100**

III was forced backwards as he was hit by a golden blast from Homura's trap. 'I was expecting the trap you used against IV nii-sama,' he said, glancing at the now useless "Heart of Stone" card in his hand. 'I see this is going to be trickier than I expected.'

'I'm not going to fall for using the same trick twice,' stated Homura.

'Evidently,' said III, smiling. 'I think I might enjoy this duel.'

'That makes one of us,' replied Homura. 'I prefer these games when people's lives aren't at stake.'

'You think I'm going to kill Tsukumo?!' cried III, surprised. 'Why would I do that?'

'Because he killed your brother,' answered Homura.

'I won't hold a grudge against him for something that wasn't his fault,' replied III. 'I only want to go and find out what his Chaos Number is why he's hunting Numbers.'

Homura moved her hand towards her disk, but remembered her duel against IV, and then the words of Kaito earlier–

* * *

><p>'I hunt the Numbers and peoples souls to cure my brother,' said Kaito. Homura's eyes widened.<p>

'You take people's souls?' she repeated.

'It's unavoidable,' answered Kaito. 'The Numbers bond to their owners' souls, filling their hearts with darkness. I can only resist due to my Photon Change. Yuma is protected by Astral. From what I've seen of them, III and IV are protected by their markings.'

'No, but… you take their souls?' insisted Homura. 'And you don't feel unhappy about that?'

'In order to take a Number, the soul must be removed,' repeated Kaito. 'I chose to do this and discard my humanity in order to save my brother.'

'You really meant it, huh,' mused Homura.

'Yeah,' said Kaito, closing his eyes. 'Of course I did. And tomorrow, I'm gonna go get Haruto.'

'Yeah…' murmured Homura, looking at the now sleeping Kaito in a totally different light.

* * *

><p>'You're going to take his soul,' said Homura to III, snapping back to the present.<p>

'I–' started III.

'You're a Number Hunter. You're going to take Yuma's soul,' replied Homura.

III's eyes closed, and when he opened them, they were hard. 'I have to,' he answered. 'In order to save my family, I have to defeat Yuma, and anyone else in my way.'

'Including me,' declared Homura. 'But this duel isn't over yet, and it's still your turn.'

'So it is,' answered III. 'Well, I'll set a card and end.'

'My turn!' said Homura, drawing, and smiling. _Hello, Mami,_ she thought, before looking at another card in her hand, "Hope's Destiny". _I think that we might be able to end this duel this turn._

'I Summon Puella Magi – Mami the Gun!' declared Homura.

**ATK: 1600, LV: 4**

Beside her, a yellow-clothed Puella Magi materialised, and winked at III. Homura went red, and turned to the monster. 'Stop that!' she yelled. 'You do this all the time!'

'I'm sorry for actually having an interest in the people you're fighting,' replied Mami, and III blinked.

'That… she… but…' he stuttered, eyes widening.

'Just as I said,' replied Homura, 'each of my monsters is a Puella Magi, a warrior I've fought in the past.'

'They're… they're actually…' stuttered III, before his eyes went hard once more. _It doesn't matter,_ he told himself. _I promised IV nii-sama that I would defeat Yuma Tsukumo, and I intend to keep that promise, even if it means I have to go through her and her friends._

'Well then,' said Homura, glancing sideways at Mami, 'now that the introductions have all been taken care of, I think that it's time I ended this. Sayaka attacks your Mud Golem!'

Sayaka leapt towards III's golem, and he flinched as Shakouki was sliced apart and it collapsed into pieces.

**III: 3100→2900**

'Additionally,' continued Homura, 'when Sayaka destroys a monster by battle, she will inflict damage equal to that monster's Level times 300! So, because Shakouki was a Level 4 monster, you take 1200 damage, III! Go, Sayaka! Tuned Cutlass!'

**III: 2900→1700**

Sayaka jumped into the air, and threw a seemingly endless barrage of her swords towards III, slicing through his clothes and into his hand. 'That… hurt…' he muttered.

'I don't want to hurt you,' replied Homura, as Sayaka landed beside her once more.

'I'm not going to surrender,' answered III, standing up and staring coldly back at her.

'Then I'm sorry,' said Homura, before taking a card from her hand and placing it into her disk. 'I activate Hope's Destiny! When a monster I control inflicts Effect Damage, another monster I control gains attack equal to the damage inflicted! I choose for my Mami to gain that attack!'

Beside her, Mami was surrounded by a swirl of blue energy as her attack power rose.

**ATK: 1600→2800**

'Now then!' continued Homura. 'Mami, attack him directly! _Tiro Finale!_'

'It's not a finale yet, Homura!' replied III, throwing his hand out. 'I activate the trap, Antikythera Mechanism!' On III's left hand, his seal flashed and he smiled. 'When I am attacked directly whilst my opponent control two Attack Position monsters,' he continued, 'I can activate this trap card and take control of your Attack Position monster that isn't attacking – but that monster changes to Defence Position, and it becomes the new target of the attack!'

**DEF: 400**

'Sayaka…' whispered Homura, as a series of ancient chains wrapped around Sayaka and dragged her in front of Mami's blast, where she was disintegrated.

'I'm sorry… Sayaka-chan…' mumbled Mami. Homura glared at III.

'There are casualties in every fight,' said III calmly. 'Now then, if you could move?'

'I'm not moving, no matter what you do,' answered Homura, eyes cold. 'I'll set a card and end. And during the End Phase, the effect of Hope's Destiny wears off.'

**ATK: 2800→1600**

III laughed, and the marking around his left eye flashed bright orange. 'And now it's time for the game to really begin,' he said, smirking.

* * *

><p>'Kaito!' yelled Ryoga, jolting the other into wakefulness.<p>

'What is it?!' replied Kaito, irritated. 'I got told I need rest, for whatever ailment I'm apparently suffering from. Especially since I need to be up for tomorrow, I'm going to go and collect my unconscious brother from those psychopaths.'

Ryoga stared very evenly at Kaito, before sighing. 'Aside from the fact that you're planning on breaking into the very centre of the Heartland complex with a broken leg,' started Ryoga, 'you've already got the rest you need. You've only been awake for about an hour so far today.'

'Well, what time is it?' asked Kaito.

'About four in the afternoon,' answered Ryoga. 'And also, I want you to talk to Yuma.'

'I don't want to help Yuma,' protested Kaito. 'He's none of my concern.'

'Oh, so you wouldn't be interested in a rematch with him, then?' asked Ryoga. Kaito narrowed his eyes.

'Yuma wouldn't challenge me to a duel,' said Kaito. 'Especially not in the state he's in right now.'

'Certainly not a standing duel,' agreed Ryoga. 'But, you see, I just found an old Duel Table downstairs, and I thought that maybe you would be interested to duel Yuma. I mean, it's not like there's anything for you to be _afraid_ of, Yuma's just another victim to you, right?'

'Well, I heard you got your hand on a Number of your own,' stated Kaito. 'What wrong with the two of us duelling?'

'You only beat me last time because of your Number,' answered Ryoga. 'I wouldn't make that mistake again.' Ryoga paused, then smirked. 'I'll tell you what. If you can beat Yuma, then we can have a rematch.'

'Fine,' muttered Kaito. 'But just because I know you won't stop annoying me until I agree.'

'Then it's settled,' said Ryoga, turning to walk out. 'I'll go and get Yuma.'

'I'm not doing this for you or Yuma!' yelled Kaito after him. 'I just don't want you annoying me whilst I'm planning for this!'

_Whatever you say, Kaito,_ thought Ryoga, before his mind turned to darker thoughts and his eyes hardened. _I never thought I'd need to help Yuma with a fear of **winning** his duels though. IV… if you're still alive, I'm going to rip you apart._

Ryoga licked his lips, and laughed, whilst his eyes blazed with a violent black flame.

_And I'm going to enjoy it._


	5. Chapter 5

'It's my turn!' said III, drawing his card and glancing at it. 'Because I control no monsters whilst you do, I can Special Summon the OOPArts monster, Crystal Skull! And because it was Summoned with its effect, I can Special Summon OOPArts Crystal Bone from my Deck, too!'

**ATK: 900, LV: 3; ATK: 1300, LV: 3**

'An Xyz Monster from a single monster?' replied Homura, startled, as III's monsters appeared beside him.

'I'm not finished!' interrupted III. 'Now, I activate the field spell, Deep Sea Kingdom – Sunken Kingdom!'

Around the two, the rooftop flickered, and was replaced by an underwater arena, surrounded by the ruins of an ancient city.

'Whilst my Sunken Kingdom is on the field,' continued III, 'you cannot attack any of my OOPArts monsters with Level 4 or lower monsters! Now the game truly begins!' His eyes flashed once more, and the seal on his hand shone, restoring itself in a flash of red.

'Additionally, when I control a field spell,' he continued, eyes now blazing, 'I can Special Summon the OOPArts monster, Tula Guardian! And then, I Normal Summon my OOPArts Golden Shuttle!'

**ATK: 1800, LV: 5; ATK: 1300, LV: 4**

'Two Level 3 monsters, a Level 4 and a Level 5?' said Homura. 'What are you planning, III?'

'Once per turn, I can make Golden Shuttle's Level 5 until the End Phase!' yelled III. 'And now, I overlay my Level 3, Crystal Skull and Crystal Bone! _With these two Level 3 monsters I construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Come forth, OOPArts monster, Crystal Alien!_'

**ATK: 2100, RK: 3**

As the monster appeared beside III, Homura involuntarily took a step backwards. 'No way…' she whispered.

'Then, I overlay my Level 5 Tula Guardian and Golden Shuttle! _With these two Level 5 monsters I construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Rise up, Number 33! **OOPArts Super Weapon, Machu Mach**!_'

III's eyes were blazing, and the seal on his hand remained cracked through its centre, as the massive castle-like Number appeared behind him. On his neck, the Number 33 appeared.

**ATK: 2400, RK: 5**

'You're possessed by that Number,' stated Homura.

'I will endure even this for my family!' answered III. 'Now go, Crystal Alien! Attack her Madoka!'

'Like I'd let you get away with that!' cried Homura, throwing her hand out. 'Trap card, activate! Hope's Compassion! By allowing each of us to draw a card, I can end the Battle Phase!'

III glared at her. 'Stop getting in my way!' he yelled. 'I _have_ to do this!'

'I won't let you hurt anyone,' answered Homura. III glared silently.

'In that case,' he finished, 'I will end.'

* * *

><p>Yuma and Kaito sat on either side of the "Duel Table" that Ryoga had found; an old device that generated tiny holograms out of the table, rather than larger ones in reality.<p>

'So are you ready for this?' asked Kaito, placing his Deck on one end of the table.

'Of course I'm ready!' replied Yuma, though his cheerfulness sounded slightly forced. 'I've been wanting to duel you for ages!'

_You don't sound like it, Tsukumo,_ mused Kaito. _But then again, you're not the same reckless boy as you were in our first duel._

'So, would you like to go first?' offered Kaito, but Yuma shook his head.

'You should,' he replied. 'It'll be like our last duel.'

_This isn't going to be like our last duel, Yuma._

'Alright,' answered Kaito calmly, taking six cards from the top of his Deck, and glancing at them. 'I Normal Summon Photon Thrasher,' he said, placing the card in the centre of his field. There was a flash, and above it a tiny version of the blue-skinned warrior appeared. 'Then, I'll set a card and end.'

**ATK: 2100, LV: 4**

'Yuma, you should not be distracted,' said Astral. 'No matter the form of duel, if we lose this, then I _will_ disappear.'

_'I know that,'_ replied Yuma mentally. _'But that's why I won't lose.'_

'I Summon Goblindbergh!' said Yuma, placing the card onto the table. 'And, when Goblindbergh is Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level 4 or lower monster from my hand! So, come on out, Gogogo Golem!'

**ATK: 1400, LV: 4; ATK: 1800, LV: 4**

On the table appeared the two tiny versions of Yuma's monsters, and Kaito eyed his set card. _Let's teach you a lesson you need to learn, Yuma,_ he thought.

'With my two monsters, I construct the Overlay Network!' said Yuma, throwing out his hand. 'Xyz Summon! Come on, Number 39! Aspiring Emperor – Hope!'

**ATK: 2500, RK: 4**

'I think not!' countered Kaito, flipping his set card. 'I activate my trap, Photon Insurrection! By Tributing a monster with an attack power of 2000 or more, I can negate the Summon of an Xyz Monster and banish that card! Then, each of us can draw a card!'

'Hope…' whispered Yuma.

'You can't always rely on Hope,' stated Kaito. 'And if that means that the only way I can show you that is to get rid of it, well then that's what I'm going to do.'

_Let's see if he can actually fight back after this,_ thought Kaito.

'I set a card and end,' said Yuma, placing a card on his field.

'That card isn't going to stop me,' replied Kaito, face twisting into a leer. 'Draw! I Summon Photon Cerberus! And I'm sure that you remember its effect?'

**ATK: 1300, LV: 3**

'Photon Cerberus, for the turn in which it summoned, seals the opponent's Trap cards,' stated Astral. 'Yuma–'

'_I've got this, Astral,_' replied Yuma silently.

'I hope so, Yuma,' said Astral, but he sounded uncertain.

'And now,' continued Kaito, 'I activate Photon Degeneration! By sending a Light monster from my hand to my Graveyard, I can draw two cards! I choose to discard this, Light Serpent! And because it was sent from my hand to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon it!'

**ATK: 1200, LV: 3**

'He has two Level 3 monsters,' muttered Astral. Yuma went pale.

_'You mean…'_ he started.

'With my two Level 3 monsters,' interrupted Kaito, as his two monsters vanished into a tiny galaxy-shaped portal on the table, 'I construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Rise forth, Number 20! Giganto Brilli-ant!'

**ATK: 1800, RK: 3**

As the monster appeared before him, Kaito smirked. 'Of course, you'll remember his effect,' he said. 'By detaching an Overlay Unit from Brilli-ant, I can increase its attack power by 300! Now go, Brilli-ant! There's nothing standing in your way! Attack Yuma directly!'

**ATK: 1800→2100**

The tiny monster leapt towards Yuma, and as it did it seemed to grow, until the monster's now huge pincers slammed into his chest, forcing him backwards. Yuma coughed blood, and looked weakly up at Kaito.

'You knew what this duel would be like,' said Kaito indifferently.

'I did,' replied Yuma weakly. 'But I'm not going to give up, Kaito, not for you or anyone else.'

'But do you mean that, Yuma?' asked Kaito. 'You've been through a lot, and I don't want to fight an unwilling opponent.'

'I…' started Yuma. 'I… I'm gonna kattobing!'

Kaito smirked. 'Then let's see it, Yuma! I set a card and end!'

'My turn!' cried Yuma, drawing. _Gogogo Giant,_ he thought, before remembering that Hope had already been destroyed.

'There is another monster you could summon with Gogogo Giant,' interrupted Astral. 'You would only need another Level 4 monster.'

_'What monster do you mean?'_ replied Yuma.

'Check your Extra Deck, Yuma,' said Astral. 'Maybe that will help.'

Yuma took his Extra Deck from its slot and looked through it. _Leviath Dragon,_ he mused. _Terabyte. Galaxy Queen. Volcasaurus. Freezerdon. Crimson Shadow. Shock Ruler–_

Yuma smiled. _'I think I've got this, Astral,'_ he thought. Astral smiled.

'I Summon Gogogo Giant!' declared Yuma. 'And, by changing it to Defence Position, I can Special Summon Gogogo Golem from my Graveyard too!'

**ATK: 2000, LV: 4, DEF: 0; DEF: 1500, LV: 4**

'And what do you plan to do with them?' asked Kaito. _Show me something impressive, Tsukumo,_ he thought.

'I activate the Spell Card, Monster Slots!' continued Yuma. 'By selecting Gogogo Giant and banishing Goblindbergh from my Graveyard, I can draw a card! And, if that card is a Level 4 monster, I can Special Summon it!'

'But if it's not,' said Astral, 'both cards will be banished. However, you're abating this risk by retaining the indestructible Gogogo Golem. Wise move. There is still no guarantee of success, though.'

'I'm gonna kattobing!' yelled Yuma, drawing his card and revealing it – the Level 4 Kagetokage. 'Yes! I got a Level 4! So come onto the field, Shadow Lizard Kagetokage!'

**ATK: 1100, LV: 4**

Kaito eyed Yuma's three monsters. _Another Rank 4?_

'I Overlay my three Level 4 monsters!' cried Yuma, as the three monsters on his field vanished into a galaxy-shaped portal. 'Xyz Summon! Come on out, Number 16! The Ruler of Colours, Shock Ruler!'

In front of Yuma appeared a strange purple-red creature, its body shaped like a set of prisms.

**ATK: 2300, RK: 4**

'So, another Number,' said Kaito, glancing at his set card.

'I activate Shock Ruler's effect!' declared Yuma. 'By detaching an Overlay Unit from it, I declare a type of card, and then neither of us can activate that sort of card until your next End Phase! I declare Traps!'

'What?!' yelled Kaito, as Shock Ruler fired a spike from its head into first Kaito's card and then into Yuma's own.

'Now go, Shock Ruler! Destroy Kaito's Brilli-ant! Coloured Strafe!'

Shock Ruler flew towards Kaito's ant, slicing through it and then into Kaito himself.

**KAITO: 4000→3800**

'That… stung…' murmured Kaito, as Shock Ruler returned to Yuma's field.

'I end! It's your move, Kaito!' declared Yuma.

Kaito grimaced, and glanced at the card he drew. _Perfect._

'I Summon Photon Crusher in Defence Position,' declared Kaito, 'and set a card to end.'

**DEF: 0, LV: 4**

Kaito looked at the central card in his hand, and smirked. _And now there's nothing to stop it,_ he thought. _Show me your real power, Astral._

* * *

><p>'Look at what I've done!' crowed IV, as he looked down at the massive room below him.<p>

In it, the room had been divided into four very distinct areas, each of a constantly changing colour and form that hurt the eye. IV, however, looked down at them in sheer insane joy.

'And…' muttered IV, twisting a dial on his system. There was a sudden movement by one of the sections, as it seemingly forced itself into a smaller shape. There was an almost inaudible screech.

'Excellent!' continued IV. 'Now, let's see how they react when…' Without warning, IV grabbed Kyubey's ball and threw it into the centre of the room.

It hit the ground and shattered, leaving Kyubey at the mercy of a quartet of witches. However, as one came near the creature, there was a terrific noise, and the witch compressed itself into its corner.

IV's eyes flashed red. 'I'm sorry, Tron,' he muttered, 'but I think that our revenge is going to become _mine_.' He laughed insanely, and tapped another knob. The noise stopped, and the four now freed witches converged on the defenceless Kyubey.

* * *

><p>Dr. Faker was troubled. Kaito had vanished, Haruto was incapacitated, and it seemed that someone, going by the pseudonym of Tron, had appeared, presumably seeking revenge. However, he felt that he had settled this. He smirked.<p>

'So,' he said to the figures on the screens in front of him, 'you both understand what must be done?'

'We do, and we shall obey, Faker-sama,' said one. 'Kaito Tenjo will be located and disposed of.'

'Don't worry, Faker-sama,' said another. 'They won't get past us.'

'I have complete faith in your abilities,' answered Faker. 'Now then, my assassins! Defeat that treacherous Kaito, and bring him to me!'

The figures bowed, and the screens went blank.

'Now all there is to take care of is Tron,' mused Faker. 'Although, if Tron is who I think it is–'

He was interrupted by another screen flickering on, and Heartland appeared on it, bowing. 'I apologise for the lack of warning, Dr. Faker-sama,' started Heartland, 'but I felt you might like to know that we found blueprints for a prototype Sphere Field within the building that unknown signal from earlier was detected in. Though damaged, several of the computers still had their memories intact, and we have been so far able to extract a lot of information about this group's movements.'

'Have you found anything about this signal?' said Faker. 'If Tron has a weapon that backfired and destroyed his own building, then who's to say that he won't make another? One that won't backfire this time, but will instead be aimed at us and ruin everything we've worked towards.'

'We are already setting up safeguards in strategic parts of the city that will weaken, if not entirely nullify, the effects of this signal. It is of little concern.'

Faker nodded appreciatively. 'Good, Heartland,' he said. 'But there is still the matter of this group themselves to deal with.'

'Don't worry,' replied Heartland. 'I have already set Gauche and Droite onto the task of apprehending them. I have given them the order to eliminate anyone that have reason to suspect is working with Tron.'

'Good, good,' said Faker. 'If we can stop Tron, then there is nothing to get in our way of defeating the messenger from the Astral World, and using the power of their own Numbers to destroy them!'

'Indeed, Dr. Faker-sama,' concurred Heartland, straightening his glasses. 'I shall leave you to your work then.'

The room once again went dark, and Faker sneered. 'You can't hide, Tron,' he mocked. 'Little by little, I'm going to pull you into a web and when I've got you you're going to wish you _had_ died when you were supposed to!'


	6. Chapter 6

'My turn!' yelled Homura, leaping back. 'Draw!' She glanced at the card she drew, and smiled.

'Good card?' asked III.

'Perfect card,' replied Homura. 'And with it, I'm going to show you that you can't think that you simply get rid of my friends. I activate the Field Spell, Hope's Paradise!'

Around them, III's underwater battleground was replaced by an empty, desolate landscape, around which shone an endless expanse of stars.

'This isn't much of a paradise,' remarked III.

'Not yet,' agreed Homura. 'I Normal Summon Puella Magi – Yuma the Healer, in Defence Position!'

**DEF: 800, LV: 3**

'Yuma?' replied III, startled, before noticing that the person appearing beside Homura was a young green-haired girl in a matching dress.

'I activate Yuma's effect!' continued Homura. 'By changing her to Attack Position, I can Special Summon a Puella Magi from my Graveyard! Return, Sayaka!'

Beside Homura, there was a burst of blue light and Sayaka reappeared, looking slightly dishevelled.

**ATK: 1900, LV: 4**

'Then, because I control two or more Puella Magi,' said Homura, 'I can Special Summon Puella Magi – Kyoko the Spear!'

**ATK: 2200, LV: 5**

As the red-clothed girl appeared beside Homura, III's eyes widened. _This is the same combination she used to defeat IV's Number,_ he thought, and looked up at the castle above him sadly. _I'm sorry, Machu Mach._

'I activate the effects of Mami and Kyoko,' declared Homura, 'negating your Machu Mach's effect and reducing the attack power of your monsters by 1500!'

Mami sent a mass of yellow ribbons that wrapped around III's castle, bringing it crashing down to the ground, before Kyoko threw her spear towards III's monsters, where it split apart into chains, tearing parts of Machu Mach and Crystal Alien off them.

**ATK: 2400→900; ATK: 2100→600**

'Be careful with them!' protested III, slumping to the ground. 'They're the only friends I still have.'

'You… what?' stuttered Homura, startled.

'My family are monsters and the only person who still cares about me is the biggest monster of them all,' replied III weakly. 'My cards have kept me company all my life, and I… I don't want to see them hurt.'

'You brought this upon yourself,' stated Homura. 'Sayaka attacks and destroys Machu Mach!'

**III: 1700→700**

The blue-clothed girl sliced through III's crippled fortress, where it broke apart into pieces, sending shockwaves towards III that threw him backwards into the air.

He fell over the edge of the roof.

* * *

><p>'…Galaxy-Eyes Photon Dragon, attack Yuma's Shock Ruler!' commanded Kaito. 'And, I activate its effect!'<p>

'Yuma, if Shock Ruler is banished, that leaves you open for a direct attack by Kaito's Twin Photon Lizard,' said Astral. 'That is damage we cannot afford to take!'

'I know that!' replied Yuma. 'I activate the trap, Braveheart! By halving my own Life Points, I can negate the activation of your Galaxy-Eyes' effect! And, because Shock Ruler is a Number monster, it can't be destroyed by battle with Galaxy-Eyes!'

**YUMA: 1900→950**

'You're still going to take the damage though!' replied Kaito, as the miniature dragon expanded to fill Yuma's vision, and he was slammed with the force of its Solid Vision attack, throwing him backwards and out of his chair.

**YUMA: 950→250**

'Kaito…' whispered Yuma, climbing back up, but Kaito wasn't finished yet.

'Now, Twin Photon Lizard!' he yelled. 'Attack Shock Ruler! _Sublime Breath_!'

As Shock Ruler was hit by Kaito's dragon's attack, Yuma flipped the card behind it. 'I activate the trap Damage Transaction!' interrupted Yuma. 'By reducing the damage by 500 – to 0 – and also by preventing your monsters from being destroyed by battle next turn, I can Special Summon a monster from my hand with 1000 or less attack power! So come on out, Full Elf!'

**ATK: 800, LV: 2**

'You could have saved yourself more damage if you had activated that in response to Galaxy-Eyes' attack,' said Kaito.

'But I needed Full Elf on the field!' replied Yuma. Kaito's eyes narrowed.

'In that case,' said Kaito, 'I set a card and end.' _What are you planning, Tsukumo?_ he thought. _This is completely unlike our last duel._

'My turn!' cried Yuma. 'I activate the Spell Card, Release Lease! By Tributing Shock Ruler, I can add Zubaba Knight from my Deck to my hand!'

'You're Tributing your Number?!' replied Kaito, startled.

'With my Shock Ruler's effects sealed by your Trap,' replied Yuma, 'I couldn't possibly hope to fight you! So, Shock Ruler's going to help me win this! I activate Full Elf's effect, discarding Zubaba Buster to increase its Level by that of Zubaba Buster, to 5! Then, I Normal Summon Gagaga Magician, and use his effect to make his Level 5 as well!'

**LV: 2→5; ATK: 1500, LV: 4→5**

Kaito's eyes widened. _Rank 5 Xyz?_ he mused.

'With my two Level 5 monster, I construct the Overlay Network!' declared Yuma. 'Xyz Summon! Come forth, ruler of the flame! Number 61! _Volcasaurus!_'

'What?' yelled Kaito, as the creature appeared in front of Yuma, standing almost on level with Galaxy-Eyes.

**ATK: 2500, RK: 5**

'Now, I activate Volcasaurus' effect, detaching an Overlay Unit from it to destroy one of your monsters and inflict damage to you equal its attack power!' continued Yuma. Kaito paled. Yuma's eager face relaxed into a smile. 'Can you stop it?' he asked.

'N- no…' whispered Kaito, looking at the creature before him. 'That there is a Number with that power…'

'I cancel this duel!' said Yuma. Kaito looked away from the now disappearing Volcasaurus at Yuma.

'You what?' he replied.

'I don't want to beat you, Kaito,' replied Yuma. 'Just because I'm able to doesn't mean I'm ready to.'

'But… you would have won that turn! Why wouldn't you take that opportunity?! You could have taken all of my Numbers!'

'You need the Numbers to save your brother,' answered Yuma, and Kaito blinked, startled. 'They're your hope for saving him.' Yuma picked his Number 39 up from the side of the table and held it up. 'Just like my friends are my hope to help Astral get his memory back.'

'Speaking of which,' muttered Kaito, 'where are your friends? Weren't they meant to be here by now?'

'Ryoga said that they arrived just before we started the duel,' replied Yuma. 'He said he was going to go and bring them up.'

'That was a while ago,' said Kaito looking around. 'Where _are_ they?'

* * *

><p>The six figures crept along the wall of Heartland Tower, attempting to be as stealthy as they could.<p>

'Uh, Ryoga,' said Tetsuo, 'do you have some sort of a plan for this?'

'No, I was planning on simply walking up to the front door and asking to enter,' replied Ryoga sarcastically. 'Of _course_ I have a plan, and that's why you're all here.'

'What do you mean?' asked Takashi. 'I mean, what can we do that you need us?'

'I don't want Yuma or Kaito to be involved in this,' said Ryoga. 'They're too recognisable. However, each of you have proved yourselves to be Yuma's friends, so I know that I can trust you.'

Ryoga paused near a door inserted into the wall, and put his ear next to it. From the other side, he heard muffled cheering.

'I think there's a match happening on the other side of that wall,' he said, moving away from the door and looking around. 'It would be too dangerous to go in through here, but there has to be a service door around here somewhere.'

'I almost forgot about the Duel Carnival, since Yuma was hurt,' said Kotori. 'But how do you know there's a service door around here?'

'I used to play in the circuits, remember?' replied Ryoga. 'There's a door for instructors and students and stuff around here somewhere that opens into a waiting room. From there, we should be able to sneak into the tower.'

They crept along the wall for another few minutes before Ryoga gestured to Kotori, revealing an electronic lock.

'You want me to… break in?!' she replied, startled.

'How else were we going to get in?' said Ryoga. Kotori sighed, and slid the cover of the device off, revealing its wires. She began to fiddle with a few small ones near the device's base, whilst the others leant in curiously.

There was click, and the device began buzzing. Kotori typed a series of numbers in too quickly for the others to see what they were, and the door slid open, revealing an apparently empty waiting room.

'Okay,' said Ryoga, stepping inside softly and glancing around – no-one in sight. 'Everyone, come on in. The corridor outside should–'

'Well,' said a voice from behind a door that Ryoga hadn't even noticed, 'I wasn't expecting you here.'

Ryoga twisted to see a tall figure with long blue hair, dressed also in blue. 'Who the hell are you?' asked Ryoga. Kotori gasped.

'That's that man, who had Haruto!' said Kotori. 'From when Yuma was duelling those brothers, III and IV!'

'So then you're yet another brother come to interfere?' asked Ryoga.

'And what gives you the impression I'm going to interfere?' replied V. 'No, if you were Kaito I would interfere, but as it is, I don't even know why you're here.'

'We're here for the same reason that Kaito would be here,' answered Ryoga calmly. 'We're going to rescue Kaito's brother.'

V raised an eyebrow. 'In that case,' he said, 'I might have to interfere after all.'

'Like hell you will!' yelled Ryoga, leaping at V. V neatly side-stepped, dodging Ryoga's attack – and tripped over Tokunosuke, who had crouched behind him. V toppled over and hit the ground hard.

'Ow,' he muttered, glaring at Ryoga angrily, whilst Tokunosuke stood up.

'Nicely done, Tokunosuke,' said Ryoga. 'Maybe you're not as bad as the rumours said.'

'Oh, the rumours are correct, ura,' replied Tokunosuke, smirking. 'Just only to people who I don't like, ura.'

'Well then, it's a good thing we're all on the same team,' commented Ryoga, before turning and walking towards the door.

'If you're going after Haruto,' said V, and Ryoga paused, 'then you might want to know that Heartland's also expecting Kaito to attempt to rescue his little brother. The people he has guarding Haruto – I doubt that you could defeat them.'

'Thanks for the advice,' replied Ryoga. 'But I know how to get around Number users.'

V smirked, as if he knew something Ryoga didn't. 'Is that so?' he said. 'Well then, I wish you good luck, Ryoga.'

Ryoga frowned, and turned to V. 'What do you mean?'

V simply smiled. 'Oh, it's not important,' he replied. 'Go on your rescue mission. I'll be expecting your remains to be brought through here in a few minutes.'

'Uh… Shark?' asked Tetsuo. 'He sounds pretty serious.'

'That's because he doesn't know who he's dealing with,' replied Ryoga. 'Come on, let's get out of here.'

The six of them walked out of the room, leaving V alone.

'Good luck indeed, Ryoga,' mused V. 'You really are going to need it against Faker's assassins, after all.'


	7. Chapter 7

Homura ran over to the edge of the roof, looking down and expecting to see her opponent's body lying upon the road far below. Instead, she was startled by III floating just below the roof's edge, his hands outstretched and filled with a deep red energy, his body surrounded by a flickering purple aura.

'How…' she whispered, as III moved back up towards her, and threw a blast of red from his hand, knocking her backwards.

'It's your move,' he said, voice suddenly devoid of emotion. His left eye, she noticed, the one with the D-Gazer marking, was firmly shut.

'I… I end…' muttered Homura.

'My turn,' said III. 'I draw.' He glanced at the card emptily, before turning back to Homura. 'Because I control an OOPArts monster, I can activate Sarcophagus of Palenque and draw two cards. Additionally, because I activated a Normal Spell Card, I can Special Summon OOPArts Aztec Mask Golem.'

**ATK: 1500, LV: 4**

Beside III appeared his monster, but he seemed to be transfixed by Homura, who stared back at him, refusing to be disturbed by what was an obvious mind game.

'Now, I activate Orichalcum Chain,' continued III. 'The next Xyz Monster I Summon can be summoned with one less Overlay Unit, but if Orichalcum Chain is destroyed, control of that monster will switch.'

Homura relaxed. _He's hoping to bring out a big monster and deal me some damage, but I'm still on full Life Points. And, during my turn, Hope Paradise will destroy his spell and give me control of whatever he Summons!_

'You're naïve,' said III, as if in response to her thoughts. 'I Release Mask Golem to Advance Summon Sol Monolith.'

**ATK: 600, LV: 6**

'Now, I overlay Sol Monolith and Orichalcum Chain's effect!' III held both his hand out in front of his face. On his left hand, the broken seal still shone weakly, and though it was bleeding from Homura's bullet he seemed not to notice it; but on his right hand, the numbers 0 and 6 shone in a deep violet light.

'Let me draw you into my hell,' said III, opening his left eye.

It was black.

* * *

><p>Three floors below them, Yuma was teaching Madoka how to duel, with a spare Deck that Kaito let him borrow.<p>

'So, when I do this,' said Yuma, sliding his Gogogo Golem onto the Duel Table, 'you can–'

The ceiling exploded and Homura's body flew through it, crashing into Yuma's bed and causing it to collapse. Yuma jumped backwards, knocking the table over, whilst Madoka froze, staring in shock at her friend.

'What happened to you?!' cried Yuma, almost leaping over to Homura and helping her up.

'The… the Puella Magi… he…' murmured Homura weakly.

'He's entering the last stage,' said Madoka calmly. 'His Soul Gem is collapsing into a Grief Seed, and as a result he's becoming more powerful but less stable. Soon the damage will be irreparable.'

'So who is it?' asked Yuma.

'Their name is Michael Arclight,' said Madoka. 'But that is not the name you know him as. You know him as III.'

'III?!' replied Yuma, startled. 'But… he wouldn't do this…'

Madoka glanced out the room's doorway for a moment, before looking back to Yuma. 'He'd do worse.'

Yuma looked out the doorway too, to see the roof outside gone. His eyes slowly fell down to the fact that everything that had previously been below that roof was also gone, and in the middle of it all was a slender figure dressed in crimson and shrouded in purple flames. He turned to look at Yuma, and for some reason Yuma instantly noticed that his left eye was shut.

'I see you, Yuma,' said III emotionlessly. 'I wish to duel you.'

'III…' started Yuma.

'Duel me,' repeated III, 'or else I will destroy every living creature in this hospital.'

'III…' whispered Yuma, before shaking his head. 'You're not like this, III!'

III's right eye narrowed. 'You don't know what I'm like,' he replied, anger in his voice. 'You don't know what I've been through!'

'I can help! We can help!'

'Nothing can help me now.' III's eye widened and went blank once more. 'Now if you're not going to duel me, then I will kill everyone in this hospital.'

'Then of course I'm going to duel you!' yelled Yuma, taking his D-Gazer and D-Pad from his pocket and throwing them into the air, where they unfolded. Yuma grabbed his D-Gazer and slipped it over his eye, whilst his D-Pad slid onto his arm.

Across from Yuma, III's feather-shaped disk unfolded and attached to his arm, whilst over his still shut left eye, an orange marking flashed for a moment, before going black.

'Duel!' yelled the two of them, taking their places on either side of the room.

'I'll take the first move!' declared III, smirking and drawing his six cards. 'Let me draw you into my hell, Tsukumo! I activate Terraforming, allowing me to add the Field Spell, OOPArts City Babylon, from my Deck to my hand! Then, I activate that Field Spell! Rise up, Babylon!'

Around the pair, the room transformed into a huge stone arena, floating above an ancient city. Behind Yuma stood Madoka, Homura lying unconscious beside him. Behind III…

_Kaito,_ thought Yuma, noticing the Photon duellist hiding behind a large building, watching carefully and clearly ready to interfere with the duel if needed.

'Then,' said III, 'I activate the effect of the OOPArts Aztec Mask Golem in my hand, Special Summoning it as I activated a Spell Card this turn!' Beside III appeared a tall, masked figure.

**ATK: 1500, LV: 4**

'Then,' continued III, 'I Release Mask Golem to Advance Summon OOPArts Moai!'

With an audible thud, the face-shaped rock appeared beside III, looming over the field.

**ATK: 1800, LV: 5**

'With that,' said III, 'I will set a card and end.'

'I'm going to help you,' said Yuma, 'whether you want it or not! Come on, As–' Yuma stopped mid-sentence and looked around. 'Astral?' he asked, startled. 'Where are you?' He took the Emperor's Key from his neck and shook it. 'Are you in there?'

'Astral won't be joining us,' interrupted III. 'I'm afraid that I've blocked his access to this dimension. You're all on your own, Tsukumo!'

'III…' muttered Yuma. 'If you think that could possibly stop me from saving you… you're wrong! It's my turn, I draw! I Summon Gagaga Magician!'

In front of Yuma appeared a black-clothed magician, surrounded by chains.

**ATK: 1500, LV: 4**

'Then,' continued Yuma, 'I equip Gagaga Magician with Bound Wand, increasing his attack power by his Level!'

**ATK: 1500→1900**

III's eye narrowed. _What are you going to achieve by inflicting a mere 100 damage to me, Tsukumo?_

'Now,' said Yuma, 'I activate Gagaga Magician's effect, making his Level 8 until the End Phase and increasing his attack power at the same time! Now go, Gagaga Magician, attack his Moai!'

**LV: 4→8, ATK: 1900→2300**

Gagaga Magician fired a blast of energy from his Bound Wand, which collided with Moai and engulfed it in a cloud of dust. However, when the dust cleared, III's monster still stood in front of him.

**III: 4000→3500**

'If OOPArts Moai would be destroyed by battle whilst in Attack Position,' stated III, 'then it can change itself to Defence Position to prevent its destruction.'

**DEF: 1600**

'Damn!' cried Yuma, looking at the cards in his hand and picking one. 'In that case, I set a card and end!' he finished.

'My turn,' said III. 'I draw.' He looked at the card he drew and laughed. 'Your fate is sealed, Tsukumo,' he mocked. 'Because I control a Field Spell, I can Special Summon OOPArts Tula Guardian!'

**ATK: 1800, LV: 5**

On III's neck, the number 33 appeared, and his smirk stretched. 'I Overlay my Level 5 OOPArts Moai and Tula Guardian! And with them I will construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon, Number 33! _OOPArts Super Weapon – Machu Mach!_'

**ATK: 2400, RK: 5**

Yuma looked up at the huge Number before him, but then relaxed. _Next turn, if I draw a Level 4 monster, I can Summon Hope and wipe that Number out before it can do any damage!_ Yuma's hand fell into his Extra Deck – and went still. He looked down slowly at it. _There's the Music Majins,_ he thought, _and Baby Tragon, but no Numbers?!_

'It seems that without Astral around, you've lost access to your Numbers, too!' mocked III. 'That's a pity for you. Machu Mach attacks your Gagaga Magician! Go, _Fire of Vris!_'

Yuma was thrown backwards as the blast of flame slammed into Gagaga Magician, shattering it into gold.

**YUMA: 4000→3500**

'You'd better hope that Astral can get back soon,' teased III. 'Without him, you haven't got a chance of defeating me!'

'I will defeat you, III!' replied Yuma confidently. 'But not for me! I'm going to defeat you for you!'

* * *

><p>Inside the Emperor's Key, Astral dodged yet another blast of red energy, fired from the eye of the massive monster that had appeared inside of it earlier.<p>

'What is this creature?' he mused, glancing back at it. His eye fell onto its chest, and he noticed a symbol written in red on the ring around its body. 'A Number?' he whispered. 'But how is that possible?'

He looked up at the pulsating red sky, and frowned. 'Just what is happening up there?'

* * *

><p>'Okay,' said Ryoga, reading off a list of instructions as the group negotiated the intricacies of Heartland Tower, 'according to Orbital's instructions, we take a left here, and then turn.'<p>

They turned left to see three passageways, each leading in another direction. Ryoga groaned, and Tokunosuke took that chance to take the instructions off of him. His face fell.

'That stupid robot forgot to tell us what direction to turn, ura,' he said, and the others groaned.

'So we've gotta check both ways?' moaned Tetsuo.

'We could always split up, nya,' proposed Cathy. 'Three of us could go one way, and the other three could go the other way.'

'And how are we meant to share the directions?' asked Tetsuo.

Kotori took her phone from her pocket. 'I could always take a picture of the instructions, then I could lead one way and Ryoga could lead the other way,' she suggested. 'And then, when we find Haruto, we can call the others using our D-Gazers.'

'That's a good idea,' concurred Ryoga. 'So, you, Tetsuo and Takashi can go left, and Cathy, Tokunosuke and I can go the other way.'

'Agreed,' said the others, and the two groups went their separate ways.

* * *

><p>Kotori guided Tetsuo and Takashi through the passageways of Heartland Tower.<p>

'And a left…' she read softly, 'and a right… another left…'

'Are ye lost, kids?' asked a voice from up ahead.

'What?' replied Kotori, still looking down at the map.

'Well, I was under the belief, y'see, that only those with permission to come this way could. So then I asked meself, I did, "what would a group of teenagers be doin' here?" and I thought that as the 'sponsible adult that I am, that I should be goin' and findin' out what you were doin' here.'

'We're here under Kaito's instructions,' replied Kotori.

'Are ye now?' answered the voice. 'Well then, I'm afraid I can't be lettin' ye pass.'

Kotori looked up into a nightmare face, and it grinned at her.

'So if ye don't mind,' it continued, 'ye'd best be comin' with me now, kiddies.'

'I won't let you!' cried Tetsuo, leaping in front of Kotori and activating his D-Pad.

'Hey, what? I can take care of myself!' protested Kotori.

'To summarise, Kotori, you don't duel,' whispered Takashi, 'so whilst we are duelling this person, you can sneak past and locate Kaito's brother.'

'Ah!' replied Kotori, smiling and leaping past the man.

'Hey, come back here!' he yelled, but was blocked by Takashi.

'To summarise,' said Takashi, 'I'm not letting you past!'

The man smirked. 'So be it,' he answered.

* * *

><p>Ryoga was similarly leading Tokunosuke and Cathy through the passageways, though they seemed to be becoming increasingly inhospitable. The group of the turned a corner and it opened up into a huge empty space, in the corner of which were a few small vehicles of a design that Ryoga found oddly familiar.<p>

'And who are you?' asked a voice, and Ryoga twisted to see a tall, white-haired boy standing near the doorways, staring at him with pupil-less eyes.

'Get out of my way,' replied Ryoga. 'I'm here on the orders of Kaito Tenjo. He's a friends of yours, right?'

'Not since he abandoned us,' answered the boy. 'I've been assigned to hunt down him and all his associates.'

Ryoga smirked. 'So, that means you're going to try to get past me, too?'

'I would rather you come quietly,' replied the boy. 'But if need be, then I will be compelled to defeat and contain you.'

'Good luck,' replied Ryoga, taking his D-Pad from his pocket, but the boy shook his head.

'This will be a different duel to the ones that you are used to,' he replied, gesturing to the vehicles in the corner. 'This will be a Speed Duel.'

Ryoga grinned. 'Perfect,' he said, taking his Deck from his pocket. 'Let's duel.'


	8. Chapter 8

'Because the monster it was equipped to was destroyed in battle,' declared Yuma, 'Bound Wand can Special Summon that monster! So come back, Gagaga Magician!'

**DEF: 1000, LV: 4**

III's eyes narrowed. 'How impetuous,' he said. 'You just refuse to admit defeat, even if you've got no way of fighting back.'

'There's always a way to fight back!' cried Yuma. 'You just need to find it! Just like how I'm fighting you, you're fighting your darkness, and I'm not going to let you fall to it!'

'You know nothing!' roared III.

'Then maybe it's time to learn!' retorted Yuma. 'It's my turn, I draw!' Yuma grinned. 'I activate the Spell Card, Gagagabolt! Since I control a Gagaga monster, I can destroy a card on your field! And I choose Machu Mach!'

'You won't get past me that easily!' replied III. 'I activate the Trap, Number Wall! Whilst it is face-up, my Numbers can't be destroyed by battle or by card effects!'

Yuma's face fell, and he glanced frantically at the rest of the cards in his hand. _Blustering Winds… Flip Flop… Holy Armor – Mirror Mail… I can't do anything with these whilst he has that Number!_

'I… I end,' said Yuma weakly.

'You should just give in now, Yuma,' said III. 'I'm going to destroy you regardless, save yourself some pain.'

'I'm sorry about your brother!' yelled Yuma. 'I'm sorry, I really am, and I would take your anger if I felt that it would help you, III, but can't you see that it's controlling you? And I don't want to part with you in anger, III! You're better than that!'

'You say that like you know me!' responded III angrily. 'How? How can you know anything about me? You can't!'

'I know you're better than this,' repeated Yuma. 'And I'll keep fighting you until you believe me!'

'Then you're fighting for a lost cause!' cried III. 'It's my turn, I draw!' He smirked. 'I activate the Spell Card, Sarcophagus of Palenque, allowing me to draw two cards! Now, I Summon OOPArts Mayan Machine, and attack your Gagaga Magician with it!'

**ATK: 1500, LV: 3**

'Trap activate!' declared Yuma. 'Gagagashield! By equipping this to Gagaga Magician, I can prevent his destruction twice!'

'Only twice?' mocked III, as Mayan Machine collided with the shield surrounding Gagaga Magician and bounced off. 'That's a shame. I attack Gagaga Magician with Machu Mach, removing your shield! Go, Fire of Vris!'

As the blast hit Gagaga Magician and destroyed his shield, Yuma relaxed. _That's another turn I've survived._

III laughed. 'During my second Main Phase,' he said, 'I activate OOPArts Resonance, allowing me to Summon an OOPArts monster from my hand with a Level 1 greater than the Level of an OOPArts monster I control! So, because I control the Level 3 Mayan Machine, I can Special Summon the Level 4, OOPArts Cabrera's Catapult in Attack Position!'

Beside III appeared a deformed, multi-armed creature with an anvil for a body. Yuma looked at it, repulsed.

**ATK: 0, LV: 4**

'Now, I activate Cabrera Catapult's effect,' said III, 'Tributing Mayan Machine and changing itself to Defence Position to reduce Gagaga Magician's attack power to 0! And of course, you remember what that means.'

**DEF: 1800**

Yuma paled. _Machu Mach's effect…_

'I activate Machu Mach's effect,' declared III, 'detaching an Overlay Unit from it to inflict damage to you equal to the change in your monsters' attack power! Go, _Infinity Cannon!_'

Around Machu Mach emerged a ring of cannons, that blasted golden light into Yuma, lifting him into the air and throwing him backwards.

**OU: 2→1; YUMA: 3500→2000**

'I can't… I can't beat him without Astral…' he whispered, stunned.

'Of course you can, Yuma,' said a voice, and he looked up to see Kaito.

'Kaito…' he whispered.

'True, III isn't just any opponent,' mused Kaito. 'But then again, neither am I. Neither was IV. You defeated the both of us with little help from Astral.'

'But… how am I going to defeat a Number?' whispered Yuma.

Kaito smirked. 'I think you'll find a way,' he said.

'Don't interfere, Number Hunter!' yelled III, turning to face him angrily. 'You'll get your turn.'

'I doubt that,' replied Kaito, helping Yuma up. 'I doubt you can even get past Yuma. You were below my notice before you even began.'

III's eye narrowed further. 'In that case, I will set a card and end. But without Astral and the Numbers, Yuma is powerless!'

'Even without his Numbers, Yuma's more powerful than you could ever be!' answered Kaito. 'And I don't need to help him to beat you.' He turned to Yuma. 'Yuma,' he said, smirking. 'You're one of the best people I've ever had to take the soul of. Now stand up already and beat this guy.'

Yuma smiled, and slowly stood up. _I'm doing this for you, III,_ he thought. 'It's my turn!' he cried. 'I'm gonna… kattobing!' He leapt backwards, drawing his card and looking at it, and then at his others, and he grinned. 'I'm going to bring down his Number,' said Yuma, closing his eyes.

'Then do it,' said Kaito, smirking.

'By reducing its attack power by 500,' said Yuma, 'I can Normal Summon Dododo Warrior!' Beside Yuma appeared a stocky Norse warrior.

**ATK: 2300→1800, LV: 6**

'And how do you expect to beat Machu Mach with those two monsters?' mocked III. 'They're not even the same Level!'

'I activate the Spell Card, Blustering Winds!' said Yuma, placing the card from his hand onto his Disk without opening his eyes. 'This increases my Dododo Warrior's attack power by 1000!'

**ATK: 1800→2800**

'I activate Machu Mach's effect!' replied III. 'I detach its remaining Overlay Unit and inflict damage to you equal to your monster's change in attack power! Go, _Infinity Cannon!_'

**YUMA: 2000→1000**

Yuma took the blasts without even seeming to notice them, instead taking another card from his hand. III's eye widened. _What the hell is going on?_ he thought.

'I activate the Spell Card, Flip Flop!' continued Yuma. 'This changes your Cabrera's Catapult to Attack Position!'

**ATK: 0**

'Even with the damage I would take from Dododo Warrior's attack,' said III, 'I still wouldn't lose, and I would be able to revive my Cabrera's Catapult with Babylon! You can't win, Tsukumo!'

Yuma opened his eyes.

'I attack Machu Mach with Dododo Warrior!' yelled Yuma.

'Are you insane?!' cried III, as the Norse warrior leapt at III's fortress.

'When Dododo Warrior attacks,' said Yuma softly, 'it negates the effects of all my opponent's cards.' III's eye widened. 'Including your Machu Mach's! Come on, Dododo Warrior! Destroy Machu Mach! _Dododo Axe!_' III looked up at the castle above him, and a tear appeared in his eye.

'Machu Mach…' he whispered. 'My friends…'

Dododo Warrior's axe sliced through Machu Mach's ring, and cracks spread all through the great castle, before it exploded in a shower of stone.

**III: 3500→3100**

'I'm not finished!' said Yuma. 'I attack your Cabrera's Catapult with Gagaga Magician!'

**III: 3100→1600**

As his deformed monster was destroyed, III's eye softened, and the marking on his left eye flashed and went orange. He opened his left eye, and it faded back to its usual red. 'I activate the trap card, Stonehenge Method!' he responded. 'When a monster I control is destroyed by battle, I can Special Summon another OOPArts from my Deck! Come on out, OOPArts Colossal Head!'

Beside III appeared the stone head, and he smiled weakly.

**DEF: 1600, LV: 4**

'III!' cried Yuma. 'You're back!'

III's eye widened, and he looked around at the hospital. 'What happened here?' he asked.

'Uh…' started Yuma.

III suddenly collapsed, and the purple aura surrounding him went red.

'III, are you okay?' asked Yuma.

'_III is perfectly alright,_' answered III, slowly standing, his eyes dilating wildly. '_I'm just doubting his conviction right now._'

'So who are you, then?' interrupted Kaito, narrowing his eyes.

'_Oh, you don't recognise me, Kaito?_' laughed III's body. '_That's understandable; from what I've gathered, you think I'm dead._'

'IV…' whispered Kaito. 'You bastard.'

'_Oh, I'm sorry, Kaito,_' replied IV. '_But you weren't going to get rid of me that easily._' III's body smirked. '_Now, if you'll just excuse me, I've got duel to finish._'

'IV!' yelled Yuma. 'I'm not going to let you hurt III! And it's still my turn! I set a card, and end.'

III's body laughed. '_Don't think your pathetic attempts are going to stop me! I activate Babylon's effect, banishing Cabrera's Catapult from my Graveyard to Special Summon Aztec Mask Golem! Then, I release Colossal Head to Advance Summon OOPArts Sol Monolith!_'

**ATK: 1500, LV: 4; ATK: 600, LV: 6**

The mark on III's left hand flashed a deep red. '_I activate Sol Monolith's effect, making Aztec Mask Golem a Level 6 monster!_'

**LV: 4→6**

'_And now, with these two Level 6 monsters I construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon! Rise forth, Number 6! **OOPArts Atlanthal!**_'

Behind III appeared a large glowing tablet-like object, which began to rapidly expand and unfold into a massive monster that stood behind III, looming over the field and staring down at the startled Yuma.

**ATK: 2600, RK: 6**

'_Now,_' continued IV, '_Atlanthal's effect activates, equipping Machu Mach from III's Graveyard to itself, and gaining attack power equal to Machu Mach!_'

'Attack power of 5000?!' yelled Yuma, startled, as Machu Mach appeared above Atlanthal and was sucked into a cavity in the ring around its chest.

**ATK: 2600→5000**

On III's right hand flashed the number 06, and III's body glanced at it in irritation. '_You're so weak, little brother,_' mocked IV. '_Not even able to withstand the strain of a Number!_'

'Don't talk about III like that!' yelled Yuma. 'He's your brother, and he loves you and trusts you where no-one else will! So don't talk about him like this!'

'_Why the hell should you care?!_' replied IV angrily. '_Why is how I act to **my** brother any of **your** concern?_'

'Because III is my friend!' cried Yuma. 'And that means that I have to protect him where no-one else will! Even if it's from you!'

'_Don't talk about things you don't understand!_' yelled IV. '_It's always about fucking friendship with you! Well, I'll show you how fragile your friendship is! I activate Atlanthal's effect, detaching an Overlay Unit from it to halve your Life Points! Go, **Orichalcum Gate**!_'

One of the huge monster's Overlay Units was sucked into its right hand, which began to glow a violent red. Then, it slammed its fist towards Yuma, throwing him backwards into the wall.

**YUMA: 1000→500**

'This Number might be troublesome,' remarked Astral.

'Astral!' yelled Yuma. 'You're back!'

'It seems that the Summoning of this monster removed it from the Emperor's Key,' mused Astral. 'That is very interesting.'

'You can wonder about that later!' protested Yuma. 'We're in the middle of a duel right now!'

'Yes,' agreed Astral. 'So let's win this, Yuma.'

Yuma grinned. 'I was just planning to.'

'_Shut up!_' yelled IV angrily. '_You should be paying attention to me, not talking to yourself! It's still my turn, and it'll be my last! I attack your Dododo Warrior with Atlanthal! Go, Divine Punishment!_'

Yuma stared upwards, petrified, as a blast of magma emerged from the volcano on Atlanthal right shoulder, and then a massive cyclone whirled towards Dododo Warrior.

'Yuma, your trap!' yelled Astral, startling Yuma out of his paralysis and causing him to look down at his field.

'Right!' cried Yuma. 'Not so fast, IV! I activate the trap card, Holy Armor – Mirror Mail! This increases my Dododo Warrior's attack power so that it's the same as Atlanthal's!'

**ATK: 2800→5000**

'_Except that Atlanthal cannot be destroyed by a monster other than a Number monster!_' protested IV.

'I'm not aiming to destroy your monster!' said Yuma. 'But by doing this, I'll avoid the damage!'

IV cursed. '_In that case, I'll end. Do your worst, Tsukumo!_'

'I'm going to, IV!' replied Yuma. 'I won't let you do what you want with III!'

'_Why do you **care** so much?!_' yelled IV. '_III is weak! He had too much compassion, and now that's been his downfall!_'

'No, IV!' interrupted Yuma. 'His downfall was having you as his brother, and letting you inside his head!'

'_Big words, from a runt like you,_' mocked IV.

'I'll show you, IV! With the bonds my friends have given me!'

'_Your friends? You won by chance last time, and I doubt you can pull that off again._'

'Shut up!' yelled Yuma. 'It's my turn!' He paused, then looked at the top of his Deck. 'I need to do this for III… no,' he corrected, remembering the name that Madoka had mentioned. 'I need to do this for Michael! I'll do kattobingu!' Yuma declared, drawing, then glancing at the card he drew and grinning.

'The pieces of our victory have been assembled,' stated Astral. 'It's time to win this, Yuma.'

'Yeah!' cried Yuma, but then his face fell. 'But… III…'

'IV is bluffing,' said Astral. 'I have observed his previous behaviour. He would not allow real harm to come to his brother.'

'Got it, Astral!' said Yuma. 'IV, this is over! I Summon Gagaga Girl!'

Beside Yuma appeared a girl dressed in the same fashion as Yuma's magician.

**ATK: 1000, LV: 3**

'_And what are you planning to achieve with them?_' asked IV. '_You were doomed from the start! And even if you could Summon an Xyz Monster, you can't possibly Summon a monster with enough attack power to defeat my Atlanthal!_'

'It's not _your_ Atlanthal, though!' replied Yuma. 'It's Michael's!'

'_What?!_'

'That monster was formed from Michael's precious monsters! He respects his monsters, even when possessed, and acknowledged their sacrifices! And even after defeat, that Number will restore his Machu Mach and with it his most precious friend! And that's why you don't understand, IV! My monsters are my friends and comrades too, and that's why you can't win!'

'_You're an idiot if you actually really think any of that,_' said IV. '_I mean, they're just cards._'

'Maybe to you,' interrupted Kaito. 'But when I fought him, he sacrificed himself to protect his monsters. And you're a fool if you can't recognise that bond! Go, Yuma!'

'You got it, Kaito!' replied Yuma, grinning. 'I activate Gagaga Magician's effect, making its Level 3! And now, with my Level 3 Gagaga Magician and Gagaga Girl, I will construct the Overlay Network! Xyz Summon, Number 17! Leviathan Dragon!'

**LV: 4→3; ATK: 2000, RK: 3**

As the dragon appeared behind Yuma, IV laughed insanely. '_That thing isn't nearly powerful enough to defeat Atlanthal, even with its attack boost!_'

'Don't count on it, IV!' replied Yuma. 'Come on Gagagas! We're gonna kattobing! When Gagaga Girl is used as an Overlay Unit with another Gagaga monster, she reduces the attack power of an opponent's Xyz Monster to zero! Go, Zero Zero Call!'

Behind the dragon, a transparent image of Gagaga Girl appeared, holding her phone out, and from it poured a stream of light that wrapped around Atlanthal. The massive monster collapsed to the ground around III's body, engulfing him.

**ATK: 5000→0**

'Now go, Leviathan Dragon!' continued Yuma. 'Attack Atlanthal! _Vice Stream!_'

**III: 1600→0**

The dragon's blue blast tore through Atlanthal and collided with the spot where III's body was buried. There was a moment's pause, then around them, the AR vanished, revealing III lying stunned on the ground. Yuma ran over to his body.

'III… Michael, are you alright?' he asked, as behind him Astral took III's Numbers from his soul, clearing it. The red aura surrounding him dissipated.

III opened his eyes weakly. 'I… I think so… Yuma…' he whispered. 'I'm… I'm sorry…'

'No, it wasn't your fault!' replied Yuma. 'And now we can help! I can help!'

'I just…' III shut his left eye in pain. 'I just wanted my brother to be happy…'

'Michael, you need to think for yourself!' said Yuma. 'I mean… we're your friends! We'll help you!'

'Thank you… Yuma…' whispered III, before screaming and vanishing in a burst of red.

'Michael…' whispered Yuma, clutching the air he had vanished from weakly.

* * *

><p>As his younger brother appeared in front of him, IV frowned in distaste. 'You almost ruined everything, III,' he said.<p>

'I'm… sorry… Nii-sama…' whispered III.

'Well, on the bright side,' replied IV, 'the experiment's complete. I don't need you any more, III.'

'But…'

'I only needed you to capture the witches,' stated IV, smirking. 'And now that you've done that, I don't need you. You can go off with your friends now, isn't that what you want?'

'I want… I just wanted… to make you happy… Nii-sama…' murmured III. His body began to flicker with a dark static-like energy, and on his chest a shadow began to coalesce.

'III?' asked IV, eyes widening. 'Are you okay?'

'Nii… sama…' mumbled III, weakly, before his body was consumed by static and he vanished inside the darkness. In the very centre, the black gem in his chest collapsed in on itself and transformed into a tiny orb, with a spike on each of its two axes.

'Michael…?' whispered IV, before the room was filled with a rushing blackness and IV was gone.


End file.
